rating a sample of the squad after liverpool’s last four

the hit

“What It’s Like,” Everlast (1998)

God forbid you ever had to walk a mile in their shoes
’Cause then you really might know what it’s like to sing the blues

the gauntlet:

9/17 | uefa champions league | liverpool 3, atletico madrid 1
9/20 | premier league | liverpool 2, everton 1
9/23 | carabao cup | liverpool 2, southampton 1
9/27 | premier league | crystal palace 2, liverpool 1

After defeating Atletico Madrid, Everton, and Southampton at home, Liverpool extended their run of single-goal victories to six straight, the most in the club’s history. Even more astonishing, dating back to the season opener versus Bournemouth, Liverpool scored the winner in six of their first seven games in the 83rd minute or later — three in added time.

When Federico Chiesa equalized on 87’ at Selhurst Park, it looked like we might be destined for another last-gasp goal. And we were… but it was Palace’s Eddie Nketiah who turned it home in the seventh minute of stoppage. It was the ultimate taste of our own medicine, a waterboarding with the sickly-sweet Pepto Bismol of final-second defeat.

We now have a decent sample size to judge our squad and our manager, including high highs and low lows, as we head into this week’s fixtures away at Galatasaray and Chelsea. Form is all over the place from player to player — in fact, if you take a look at shirt numbers 1-10 in the context of the four-game gauntlet we just experienced, the player ratings are spaced almost perfectly.

rating numbers 1-10 from 1-10

#1 Alisson Becker: 9
The Holy Goalie.
A gorgeous man. After his recent exploits at Selhurst Park, it’s fair to say he’s at the top of his game. He could do nothing for either Palace goal, both wide open shots from close range following set pieces. The three saves he made in the first half — a half in which Palace generated four big chances and 1.83 xG to our 0.41 — are all examples of world class positioning and an ability to not only read where the attacker is going, but parry the shot into safety. Likewise, he wasn’t at fault for any of the three he conceded against Atletico and Everton. His view was obstructed by Griezmann for Atleti’s first (should have been offside, IMO) and the second Llorente strike came off Mac Allister’s heel, giving him no chance. Full credit to the Ev for crafting a beautiful goal of their own at Anfield, which ended with Gueye sticking the ball in the top corner.

Is there a better keeper in world football? If so, who? Courtois? Donnarumma? Sommer? F**king David Raya? I’m taking ours. As Slot rebuilds our team with new personnel, he accounts for a ton of the glue that’s holding it together.

#2 Joe Gomez: 5
I hate talking smack about Joe, the longest-serving and chillest member of the team. After an incredible cameo vs. Arsenal, I breathed a little easier considering our center back situation. No Guehi, so what?

His start and subsequent 90+ mins against Southampton in the Carabao Cup… not great. Bad, actually. I’m not sure if he was more dialed in versus Arsenal, a much better opponent than Southampton that afforded us much less possession, but the contrast in performances was wild. There was a timely tackle or two, but Joe gave away the ball for fun far too often. Slot has gone out of his way to praise him at times, but sloppiness in possession is a major no-no for this manager, and probably a big reason Joe didn’t replace Ibou after his howler last weekend. Still, without Leoni, Joe is going to need to regain his composure, because we’re going to need him.

#3 Wataru Endo: 5
The man in the gum shield. A fan favorite for good reason. Has never ducked a challenge in his life. Knows his role is to try ruin the lives of the other team. Takes yellow cards as regularly as breaths of oxygen.

I was astounded by how pivotal he was in Klopp’s final season at the helm, when he was more often a starter than a sub. Slot used him to great effect as cleanup crew when we were defending narrow leads last year. Now, though, whether it’s lack of game time or age creeping up, he looks a step below the quality of virtually every other member of the team. His error for the goal was a shocker, yes, but he was caught with the ball far too often against Southampton. He just doesn’t look quick or neat enough with the ball at his feet to maintain a place at Liverpool for much longer. I hope he proves me wrong.

#4 Virgil van Dijk: 8
So often the only adult in the room — a room that (am I allowed to say this?) should probably be padded given the psychos he shares the back line with. The stoppage time winner versus Atletico seemed to be a conscious decision: “I’m scoring and no one’s gonna stop me.” For all the panic around the last half-hour of the derby, Everton actually created very little in the way of clearcut chances, and Virgil was at the heart of that. He wasn’t great at Palace, but then, nobody was outside of Alisson and maybe Szoboszlai.

#5 Ibrahima Konate: 4
The vibes are off with big Ibou right now. He suffered a poor start to the season as Madrid rumors swirled, but seemed to bounce back against Arsenal and carry that decent form through the Everton game. Well, the bounce back is over. Ball just got popped.

His performance at Palace, the first half in particular, was as bad as I’ve seen a center back play for Liverpool since Dejan Lovren was hooked at Tottenham pre-van Dijk. His dawdling on the ball led to a counter and almost cost us a second goal conceded, and from that moment, the mistakes compounded. Mateta sensed panic and bullied him 1v1 on countless occasions, baiting him into a yellow card. Positionally, he and Bradley were so disconnected that one long ball between the pair of them unlocked our entire back line.

Not sure what else to say other than we know how good he can be — MOTM in a Champions League final and one of the best defenders in Europe this time last season. Time to toughen up physically and mentally.

#6 Milos Kerkez: 6
After Frimpong’s strong start to the season and Kerkez’s iffy one, it feels like roles have begun to reverse. While Milos hasn’t put in consistent 7 or 8/10 performances since the international break, his play is far less rash. He isn’t the swashbuckling, high-flying wingback we saw last year at Bournemouth just yet, but he looks sharp. I thought he was especially good in the derby. Sure, he’s still prone to the occasional odd decision — in the dying moments at Palace, his choice to swivel and spoon the ball out with his left rather than put his right through it cost us the long throw of doom — but they’re fewer and further between.

#7 Florian Wirtz: 6
Tough one to rank. One of our two prized summer acquisitions hasn’t settled the way we hoped, there’s no denying, but there are flashes of brilliance that show the caliber of player we have on our hands. It’s no surprise that his best performance for the club so far came in the UCL against Atletico, when he was unplayable for large periods. The speed, intensity, and physicality of the Premier League, especially when you play in the center of the pitch, takes getting used to. While his zero goals/zero assists in the proper season (he assisted Ekitike in the Community Shield) have brought glee to rival fans, the truth is he’s been a hair away from goal involvements numerous times. His layoff to Salah that ended with him striking the inside of the post versus Atletico, the cutback and last-second Tarkowski tackle versus Everton, and most notably, the back-door run and close-range miss from inside the six versus Palace — they all should’ve ended with the net rippling. As long as he connects play and continues to do the defensive work required, the goal involvements can wait, but it’s fair to say Slot is still figuring out how to best use Flo, our could-be game changer this season.

#8 Dominik Szoboszlai: 8
Don’t let the ranking of less than 9 mislead you: Dom has made an incredibly strong case for our player of the season thus far, alongside Ryan Gravenberch. It’s not a stretch to say he’s performed better at right back than our actual right backs when asked to do the job. Everyone highlights his engine and his constant sprints, which are as valuable in top-level football as on-ball ability. But there’s a difference between willingness to run and hunt the ball and actually winning the ball back, which is something Dom does better than anyone else in the team, especially when he’s playing in his natural position of central midfield. Jones, Macca, and Wirtz are the expendable ones so far this season — Szobo and Gravenberch are two of the first names on the team sheet.

#9 Alexander Isak: 7
There are a billion extenuating circumstances to consider here. Namely fitness, but also opposition and anomalies in terms of team performance. Coming on for the last 30 of an in-the-balance Merseyside Derby, playing with the second-teamers versus Southampton, then taking part in one of the worst halves of team football Liverpool’s played in years, all without adequate time to bed in and get back to full speed — these aren’t the perfect conditions for judging our pricey new 9. Good lord, though, does the guy have incredible feet for a big man. His finesse and ability to squeeze shots out of nothing is going to result in a lot of goals for Liverpool. He took his first goal for the club incredibly well, lifting it over McCarthy instead of blasting it. Can’t wait to see what he produces this season.

#10 Alexis Mac Allister: 6
One of our most influential players from last season has found this season difficult so far. Whether, like Isak, there are fitness concerns, or he’s learning to play with Wirtz, who likes to take up similar positions, the fact is he isn’t impacting games the way we all know he can. When Macca’s himself, he’s the guy who makes the right decision a million times in a row, Mr. Reliable. He’s unusually prone to errors this campaign. Having said that, I’m not as low on him as many others are. This ain’t Space Jamhis talent didn’t just leave his body. He isn’t costing us the way a few of our defenders have. The unfortunate news for Macca is that Dom and Ryan are playing so well, he’s going to have to contend with two or three others for that third midfield place.

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hannibal handball hands reds (another) handy late winner